Courtney Cavinder Interview

Vicious. Mean. Injury inducing. These aren’t the qualities that most people look for in a pet. Jesse McKinney is not most people. I met Jesse when we stopped into Petco in Anchorage to get our fix of petting animals.
We walked into Petco in Anchorage. I thought it would be good for the kids to pet some animals. I know I am missing my golden retriever, Sophie, and thought maybe handling critters would help us get our animal fix. We went over to where the rescue cats are located. They were in really nice enclosures that did not allow us to pet them, and the rescue lady had just left. I then asked to see if there were any other animals for us to pet. We were directed to the ferret and guinea pig area. We were met by a nice young lady. Before we were able to pet the ferrets she was pulled away to help another customer with a very mean blood python. I was curious why someone was interested in a mean animal, but happily continued to pet ferrets with the new Petco worker.
After we were finished petting the ferrets I thought it would be interesting to go check out the blood python. As we walked back towards the snakes I noticed the original Petco worker standing next to the snake enclosures clasping her hand. Upon further inspection, I noticed she was dripping with blood. While showing the customer the blood python, it bit her. I began to talk to the young man interested in purchasing a snake. Jesse, of Anchorage, had come to Petco to find an animal. Jesse was not looking for just any animal, but he was looking for a reptile. He already had a 1 year old bald python named Ra, for the sun god. He also has a 7 month old hog boa named Odin and a California king snake named Kai. “I like having them in the house. They look cool and are fun to feed”, Jesse shared. “It’s nice to see the primal instinct kick in when you throw in a mouse.”
Because of that primal instinct, Jesse was looking for an animal that was aggressive. He was thrilled to find not only the blood python, but also a really mean gecko. I can assure you that a blood thirsty snake or a vicious gecko are NOT in my top 100 ideal adoptable animals, but it’s nice to know that there are people out there that care about animals and appreciate them as they are (even if they are not supper cuddly and do not give you little puppy kisses).